Washed Away by Rain
by GoldenWaffle55
Summary: Dib had been locked out of his house and decided to go for a walk. After finding Zim, something happens that might change everything between them. Probably gonna be ZADR. There will be a lot of dark themes and mentions of suicide. You have been warned. Rated M just to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

A rock clacked against the wet, cement sidewalk as a black, steel toed boot kicked it out of frustration and boredom. It was raining and grey. A few street lamps and outside light decorations gave off enough light for the young boy to see where he was going. He didn't know exactly where he was going; if there was even anywhere for him to go. He was locked out of his home again. This was probably the third time this month that his father had either forgotten he had a son or purposely locking the door so his son couldn't get in. This was normal though. It was normal for his father to _finally _decide to take a break from work to spend Christmas with his 'family'; if you could even call it that anymore.

Dib's family was completely falling apart.

It started when Dib was young, when his mother had died. His dad had gone off to work, leaving Dib, his little sister, and his mother alone at home. A couple of men decided it would be fun to rob their happy, little family. They broke in and completely destroyed everything. His mother was a strong, brave woman and she did everything to stop them, but they just laughed, sneered, and destroyed her along with everything else. Dib had been smart and grabbed his little sister, who was crying and scared, and hid in a cabinet. He wanted desperately to help his mother, but what could he do? He was only six, he couldn't beat up big, scary men. He stayed hidden with his little sister, holding her, hoping, crying, _praying _that his mother would be okay.

By the time all the noise had gone away, Dib was brave enough to peak out to see how much damage was done. Everything was broken. Glass and papers littered the floors. Furniture was tipped over and strewn about the house. There were holes in the walls from the men throwing heavy things at it.

And then there was his mother, in the middle of it all, clothes and hair a mess, laying on the floor in a pool of her own blood.

Gaz was too young to understand what had happened and she clung to her brother, crying and desperately trying to get him to tell her what was wrong with mommy.

All Dib could do was stand there, shocked, tears pooling out of his eyes as he stared at the image in front of him. There were so many things going through his head. One thing stood out though, writing it out in blood, tears, and shattered glass.

His mother was dead.

Ever since that day, his father had treated him differently. Instead of blaming himself for not being there for his family; like most normal fathers would do; he blamed Dib. Telling him that he hadn't done a good enough job at protecting his mother and sister. That he was a coward. That he didn't deserve to be his son. That it was Dib's fault his mom had died.

After that, Dib's dad had completely ignored him. He never told him he loved him, never gave him a hug, not even a simple pat on the back. He didn't even acknowledge his existence. Most of the time he was never home, out on business trips all the time, but when he was, he never spoke to Dib, waved to him, or even looked in his direction. Instead he would smother Gaz and give her everything she wanted. Gaz was his little princess and Dib was the now nonexistent little boy who had died a long time ago along with his mother.

And now, every time he came home from work on the holidays, he would lock Dib out. Sometimes, if Dib was lucky, Gaz would sneak him back inside (since she actually cared about him) and he would hide out in his room, while his dad fawned over Gaz.

And now was one of those holidays.

Dib had gone home after school to find the door locked. He had looked inside but could only see the lights on the Christmas tree through the curtains. He had waited outside for about an hour and a half before realizing that Gaz wasn't able to let him in today.

And that was how he ended up here, walking down an endless road that led to nowhere. It hadn't helped that it started raining. He didn't really mind it though. The rain was nice and he felt like it was washing away his pain. He didn't want to sound like a depressed, emo kid or anything because he wasn't. He was actually a fairly happy kid, enjoying life as much as he could. Since his dad was never home, he had a pretty normal life. His dad was rich and sent money to Gaz for food and clothes, so Gaz split it with Dib. It was more than enough to keep both of them comfortable, so Dib was able to live a semi-normal life.

Well if you call your dad ignoring you, kids bulling you at school, and protecting the earth from a certain alien 'normal'.

Speaking of the proud, green, little alien, he hasn't been at school lately.

He was probably working on some great new invention for human conquest or something.

Dib smiled at the thought of the little Irken soldier. Lately Dib's feelings on Zim had... Changed. He no longer felt like he wanted to hurt Zim every time he saw him. That feeling only came when Zim had done something to infuriate him. And even then that feeling only lasted for a second before it was gone. He didn't know when, but the feeling of anger toward the little alien and gone and had been replaced with something else. Something he couldn't quite put his finger on...

Every time Zim walked into the classroom, he felt butterflies flutter through him. Every time Zim would scream and yell at him, he listened very intently, soaking every word up, as if Zim's obnoxious, strangely, high pitched voice, was the most beautiful thing he had ever heard. Every time he was close to Zim, he felt his chest squeeze and he had the urge to touch Zim, in a non-painful way. Every time Zim walked, he started paying more attention to his body. The way his lithe, almost feminine, hips moved with every step he took, the way he held his finely shaped chin high in the air, the way he clenched both fists at his sides, the way he marched like a expertly trained soldier, even when he was relaxed and had his guard lowered.

Dib blushed a little and kicked the rock he had been kicking the entire time he was walking. Instead of rolling along the length of the sidewalk like i had been doing, it bumped against a tree, making Dib snap out of his thoughts, just inches before he collided with the tree himself. He looked up and found that he was now by the park. It was quiet except for the rain pitter-pattering on the ground. He supposed that no one would want to play at a park while it was raining.

So then why did he hear a faint squeaking?

Dib looked around the deserted park for any signs as to why he heard such a noise. His eyes landed on the swings, and he almost chocked on air when he saw what; or rather _who_; was there.

A familiar green being, clad in a pink uniform with black boots and gloves, was sitting on the swings, in the rain, just staring off into space.

It didn't seem right...

What on earth would Zim be doing _here, _at the park, in the _rain_, and _sitting on a swing_!? Zim hated the rain! he also hated anything that involved human activities! Last time Dib checked, swinging was a human activity.

At least... he was pretty sure it was...

Did Irkens have swings? Maybe Zim was homesick and wanted to do something that reminded him of his planet?

But that wouldn't make any sense, it was still raining, and Zim hated the rain, even though he had paste and was no longer affected by it.

Something was definitely wrong, and Dib didn't like it one bit.

He jogged over to Zim and called to him but he didn't answer, or even turn around. Dib ran around to the front of the swings and stood in front of Zim. He stood there for a moment thinking Zim would look up, or yell at him, or at least _move_. But he didn't.

Dib leaned down a little and waved his hand in front of Zim's face to try to get a reaction, but still nothing. Zim had his disguise on and his wig no longer looked like a glob of wax, it was wet and hanging in front of his eyes like bangs as he just continued staring off into space, slowly swinging himself back and forth with his feet. He seemed to be in some sort of trance.

"Zim...?"

Still nothing.

"Z-Zim... are you okay?" worry dripped in his voice and he reached out a hand to Zim shoulder and lightly touched it with the tips of his fingers.

Suddenly Zim's eyes widened and he screamed out in pain as if Dib had just shot him in the shoulder, instead of just lightly touching it.

Dib jumped back surprised and watched as Zim's Pak shot sparks everywhere. Zim shook violently and gripped the swing so hard it looked like he was about to break it in half.

Dib panicked.

What was wrong with Zim!? He sounded like he was in pain! Sparks were flying everywhere from his Pak! Wait- weren't Paks electronic? Yeah, if Dib remembered correctly from the documents he stole from Zim's computer, they were like a second brain- but electronic. Were they waterproof!? Well considering that Irkens had a terrible reaction to water, it was probably something they didn't have on their planet, which meant it wouldn't be waterproof.

So did Zim's Pak get water in it and it was electrocuting him!?

Suddenly Zim stopped shaking and stared off into space again for a very, very long time. Dib was too afraid to do or say anything, afraid he would cause another reaction like the one Zim just had. A few seconds later Zim fell off the swing and onto the ground. His eyes were still completely open and wide, staring into nothing, like a robot that had just been abruptly shut down.

Dib didn't know what to do. If he touched him again he might hurt him, if he just let him lay there, more water could seep into his Pak! He looked around frantically trying to think of something to do.

Finally he decided that the best idea would be to take Zim back to his base, get him dried off, and hope Zim's computer would know how to fix his Pak.

Cautiously, he picked Zim up gently and held him bridal style, running as fast as he could in the direction of Zim's base.

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**I really should be working on my other fanfiction 'Role Switch', but this idea came to mind, and I HAD to write this. I was a little scared to post this cuz I thought it would be stupid, but I got up the courage and decided to post this. I literally wrote this in less than two hours, so hopefully it's good.**

**Just so there's no confusion; I get really paranoid that my writing confuses everyone who reads it; the story takes place at around Christmas time and Dib's dad hates him because he thinks Dib was responsible for his mothers death. **

***loud sigh* I hope that everyone reading this likes it. Hopefully everything wasn't too rushed and it makes sense. Please review and I'll love you forever. **


	2. Responsibilty

**I got one review for the first chapter! I am happy for this review, even if it was only one. Reviews are awesome; good and bad! **

**So here is the next chapter of Washed Away by Rain, I hope you enjoy it. **

**Reviews will make me happy! **

* * *

After running for what seemed like forever, Dib finally made it to Zim's base. Luckily the green being was small and light so Dib was able to run faster. He thought it would be hard getting past the garden gnomes, but since he was holding their master, they didn't shoot at him.

Dib threw open the door to Zim's base, since it was almost never locked (Zim really needed better security), and before he could step inside, Gir came running out of the kitchen, screaming manically. He threw himself at Dib's leg and pulled on his pant leg, like a little kid trying to get the attention of an older sibling or parent.

"Mary! Mary! Master was really sad, and he left, and gave me a hug, which he never does because Master hates hugs, and then it started raining, and I got worried, but Master said not to follow him and guard the base, and then I was watching the scary monkey show but I got hungry so I went to make waffles, and then president Bush started talking to me through my head about something I don't remember now, and then-"

Dib cut the robot off before he could ramble on anymore about unimportant things. "Wait, you said Zim was sad? Sad about what?"

"Yeah! Master's been really sad, but he didn't say why! He just kept hugging me and crying! I tried to make him feel better by giving him waffles but it didn't help!"

Zim had been _crying?_ But Zim was always boasting about his superior race that hadn't any need for emotions. Dib shook the thoughts away. He had more important things to do, he could ask questions later. He pushed Gir off his leg and set the small alien on the couch, laying him on his side so his Pak wouldn't get damaged anymore that it already was. He grabbed a towel off the ground that smelled terrible; it was probably Gir's; but would do its job in getting Zim dried off. He wasn't quite sure what to dry off first. If he dried off Zim's body first, he might get another reaction like the one at the park. If he dried off the Pak first, it might electrocute him. He did what his instincts told him to do, and dried off Zim's body. He seemed to be unconscious at the moment, so maybe nothing would happen.

He began by drying off his face, and made his way down. He was going to take Zim's wig off but it must have been glued on, because it didn't want to come off. He also wasn't sure about Zim's clothes... Well taking off his shirt wouldn't be a problem but his pants were another story. Dib turned to Gir and told him to come here. He bent down to the robots size, put his hands on his metal shoulders, and stared right into his eyes.

"Gir, I need you to do something very important. I need you to go get Zim another outfit, can you do that?"

Gir's eyes turned red and he saluted, indicating that he was at full attention and would most likely get this task done properly. He ran off into the kitchen and not too soon after came back with a different outfit. It didn't look like Irken clothing though. It look like human clothes, but in the same colors. Dib held up the pink, striped shirt, only to find out it wasn't a shirt, but a sweater. It was strange that the Irken had this, but he didn't question it. He was just glad that Gir had done something right and he could continue taking care of Zim. He went back to drying off Zim and took off his pink shirt.

Zim stayed limp with his eyes opened and unblinking the entire time. It made Dib a little creeped out, like he was touching a dead body or something. Hopefully he wasn't _actually_ dead and this was just his Pak acting up.

Once the teen had finished up with Zim's torso, he examined the Pak. It really needed to get dried off before something happened again. This was probably going to be one of the biggest challenges in his life. He cautiously brushed his fingers against the Pak and pulled them away when it shocked him. He was going to need rubber gloves, but seeing as how Zim only had three fingers, he probably only had three fingered gloves. Dib gave another order to Gir to find some rubber gloves for him and luckily, Gir had come back with five fingered gloves. Another odd thing that he didn't question.

He slipped the gloves on and grabbed the towel. He was very very careful not to bump anything too much and managed to dry it off. Any internal damage was to be fixed by the computer.

Unable to bear taking off Zim's pants, Dib made Gir do that part for him. The robot had put Zim's new pants on backwards, but at least they were on.

Dib wasn't sure how this worked, but he knew that whenever Zim needed something from his computer he just seemed to talk to the walls. Which would mean that the whole house was the computer. Dib was a little nervous about this, but he managed to shyly ask the computer if he knew how to fix Zim's Pak.

The computer let out a groan and gave Dib a sarcastic answer. "No, of course not, why would a computer full of Irken knowledge know how to fix Irken technology?"

"Well then, will you fix it?" Dib thought it was weird to talk to the walls and it was even more weird that when the computer talked he couldn't figure out where it was coming from. It just seemed to be everywhere.

"Yeah, I guess." the computer sighed and bunch of random cords came out of the couch and latched onto the Pak. There was a loud whirring noise and Dib only guessed that the computer was trying to look for the problem. "The Pak has lost a lot of data and has water damage. It only knows how to keep him barely alive, everything else is gone. However, I can reprogram it and repair the damage."

Dib bit his nails and thought for a moment. If what the computer said was true, then Zim was still alive, and would live but everything might be different. That would mean he lost all of his memories. Zim also might not have the same personality. Meaning Dib would never again know the same alien had for so many years. The alien he had stalked, obsessed over, and now maybe even sort of liked. Saying that Dib was nervous was an understatement; he was _terrified_. Terrified that he'd never get to hear Zim's boastful laugh, never get to listen to Zim's rambling, never get to talk to him again. He couldn't lose Zim! Zim was all he had! What would he do without him? The only reason why Dib got out of bed in the morning is so that he could see Zim. He just couldn't lose him, not now, not ever.

The computer was tired of the silence coming from Dib as he was deep in though and let out a long impatient sigh. Finally the human looked up and asked quietly. "Can you reprogram his personality?"

"Duh."

Relief washed over Dib and he smiled a little knowing that he wouldn't lose Zim. If he lost Zim he'd probably... Well right now that wasn't important. He just wanted Zim back. "Good. Then you can start reprogramming it."

"Alright, but you should know that-"

"I don't care!" Dib surprised himself at his outburst. Usually he was the type to look after details and make sure everything would be perfect. But he didn't want to wait any longer. "I just want him back..."

There was a long moment of silence and then the computer went to working on Zim. It took several minutes and Dib was pacing the entire time. Even though it was such a short amount of time, it felt like eternity for Dib. He looked over at Gir who was now back to normal and watched as the computer worked. Even though he was a robot, he never failed to show facial expressions and right now his expression was turned into one of worry and sadness.

Finally the computer was done and the cords retracted back into the couch. (Why there were cords in the couch, Dib didn't know and probably never would). "Pak reprogramming complete. Irken life form now stable. It will take 30 minutes to an hour for him to wake up."

The teen sighed and nodded his head. "Thank you."

"Your welcome, Master."

At first Dib hand't fully comprehended what the AI had said. Then it struck him that it had just called him 'Master'. "I... I thought Zim was your master?"

"Yeah. He _was_ our master. He isn't anymore."

Dib stared confused for a moment. Everything seemed to be confusing today. "Anymore...? What do you mean?"

"You really are dumb, aren't you? I'll translate this into stupid language so you'll understand. When technology loses all of its data, that means it loses everything. Zim's Pak lost its data, so it lost the data saying that Zim was our master. Since I reprogrammed it, Zim no longer remembers he's our master. And when I say 'our', I'm referring to Gir and I. And since you were the only one here to give us orders, you automatically became our new master. We've been imprinted on you. Congratulations, you're a daddy."

He wasn't exactly sure what to make of this. On one hand, he had always wanted to gain control of Zim's computer so he could stop him from conquering the Earth, on the other hand, he didn't think he could handle this kind of responsibility.

Before he could let his mind go any further on the matter, Gir had ran up to him and hugged his leg. "Yay! You're my new daddy!"

That was another thing. He really didn't want to have Gir around him 24/7. Gir was helpful and all, but he was really crazy and could never focus.

"Can't you just tell the Pak thingy that Zim is your master?"

"No." was the flat reply. He wasn't sure if the computer just didn't want to or if he was actually incapable of doing it.

Dib rubbed his eyes with his palms in exasperation. It was already really late and really didn't feel like dealing with all this in one day. He looked out the window; it was still raining and dark. He didn't want to walk home in that kind of whether and even if he did, the door would probably still be locked. Seeing no other solution to his predicament, he threw up his hands in defeat and decided to just stay at Zim's base for tonight. He could deal with all this in the morning when his brain was working a little more clearly. He commanded Gir to go get him two blankets (where was Gir getting all of this stuff from anyway?) and drapped one over Zim.

Zim now looked like a peaceful, living being instead of a corpse. His eyes were closed he had curled up to keep himself warm. His fake hair was tousled and he almost looked human- if you believed that he actually had a skin condition. Dib brushed a lock of fake hair from his face and smiled.

"Please be okay in the morning, Zim."


	3. Becoming human

Lavender eyes slowly opened and looked around groggily. It was dark. Really dark. Wait, there was a little bit of light from a single street lamp outside, shining in through the window. Just enough to see a bit of his surroundings.

Where was he again?

He still wasn't conscious enough to think clearly. His body was sore and his head pounded. He heard the soft patter of rain against the window and roof and felt soothed by it. Rain was nice to listen to and he almost forgot about the pain in his head; as if it was being washed away by the rain.

He shifted to get more comfortable and he felt a blanket shift with him. He didn't know, or really care at the moment, what was going on, but he was grateful for the blanket and pulled it closer around him. It was warm and it was really cold in this place; where ever this place was.

Stupid parents not making sure the house was properly heated.

Realization washed over the boy as he started to remember about his parents. Right, his parents. He was at his home. His parents must have put a blanket on him. He'd have to thank them later.

Although if his parents had cared enough to put a blanket on him, why weren't they here right now?

The boy opened his eyes again and pondered this. Well, it was really late, from the look of how dark it was outside, so maybe his parents had gone to bed. He frowned a little at this. It would be really nice to hear the soft, comforting voice of a mother and feel the gentle but firm pat on the head from a father. Although he still wasn't fully awake to remember what his parents looked and sounded like.

Now that he thought about it, he couldn't really remember anything before a few seconds ago when he had woken up. That was strange. He couldn't even remember what his name was. Didn't it start with a 'z'? Zip? Zig? Zim? That last one sounded right! His name was Zim. Seems like an odd name to give your child but it wasn't terrible.

He didn't remember why he was sleeping in the living room either. Shouldn't he be sleeping in his bedroom like a normal teenage boy?

He tried to come up with a logical explanation for this. Maybe he had fallen asleep playing video games in the living room and his parents didn't want to disturb him so they just left him here? Well that seemed reasonable, but then why did his body hurt so much?

Feeling a little more awake and able to at least sit up, he pushed the blankets down a little and sat up looking around and trying to adjust his eyes to the dark. He still couldn't see much but he saw a television on the opposite wall from him and saw a big picture hanging on the wall above him. He couldn't tell what was on the picture but that wasn't really relevant.

Wanting to find his parents and get some information on what had happened, he braced himself with his hands on the couch and pushed himself up. He was a little wobbly and it took him a moment to get his legs to hold his body weight. His muscles burned in protest but he didn't feel like listening to them. A thought occurred to him that he could have just called for his parents instead of getting up. He facepalmed at the realization of this.

Something wasn't right.

His hand. It didn't feel right. He pulled his hand away from his forehead and held it in front of his face. He tried to look at it but it was still dark so he couldn't see. He wiggled his fingers. It felt like he only had two fingers and a thumb. But that wasn't right, people had four fingers and a thumb. The only time people didn't have all five of their fingers was when they had been in a terrible accident and lost them. His eyes widened as panic started to take over his body. He held up both his hands and tried to count his fingers, walking toward the window so he could look at them in the light.

Before he could even take two steps, he tripped over something on the floor and fell with a small squeal of surprise. The lump bolted up with a yell and frantically looked around.

"Wh-what? Zim? Are you awake?"

Zim scrambled around on the floor where he was and stood up in a defensive position. It wasn't really a 'defensive' position it was sort of him putting his hands out in front of him. Adrenaline and fear made him get up so quickly so he wasn't really sure what he was doing. He felt dizzy and confused all over again like when he had woken up.

Dib felt around in the darkness for his glasses and put them on. Not that they helped, because it was pitch black. He blinked away his sleepiness and got up to turn on the lamp by the couch. When a soft, yellow-orange, glow filled the room he saw Zim standing in the middle of the room, terrified, his eyes wide and he had his hands up like someone was about to hit him.

"Z-Zim? Are you okay?"

The smaller teen slowly lowered his hands and looked up at the tall person standing before him. Either he was abnormally small for a teenage boy or this person was abnormally tall, because he had to look up quite a ways before he met the persons face. It was a male, and he had glasses and odd hair. His head was pretty large too. He was wearing a blue shirt with a neutral smiley face and black pants. He also seemed to know Zim's name. Obviously this person knew him, why else would he be sleeping in his home and know his name? Maybe he was his friend? Or better yet, maybe he was his brother?

Zim opened this mouth to say something, but no words came out. He just looked like an idiot, standing there with his mouth opening and closing, not saying anything. Not able to communicate with words, he held out his hand to show the taller being, hoping he would notice that two of his fingers were missing.

Dib stared at Zim questioningly, wondering what message he was trying to convey by holding out his hand.

"Your hand? Is there something wrong with it?"

Zim gave him a look like he was the dumbest person on the planet. He held out his hand again and walked closer to Dib to show him the missing fingers. Finding his voice, he began to talk to Dib and was a little annoyed with how high-pitched and annoying his voice sounded. "_What's wrong with my hand? _Are you serious? I am _missing _two of my _fingers_ and-" he looked down at his hand and Zim's eyes couldn't have possibly gone any bigger as he stared at his hand in sheer horror. "-and... and my hand is _green. _What is going on here!?"

Dib was confused and looked at Zim's hand to see what he was talking about. "Missing two fingers? They all look there to me. And... your hand has always been green?"

Zim gave him another weird look and thought for a moment. He was racking his brain trying to find an answer as to why this person thought it was completely normal. Then it dawned on him and he felt slightly relieved.

"Because... I have a skin condition... right?"

Now it was Dib's turn to give Zim the weird look. Before he could open his mouth to question anything, Zim's body went limp again and he fell down (luckily Dib was quick enough to catch him before he hit the ground). Dib tried to shake him and wake him up but it didn't work. "Computer!"

"I'm busy." it said flatly.

"Computer, why did Zim faint? Why does he believe he has a skin condition? What's going on!?"

The AI sighed and paused before speaking to its new master. "Before you had rudely interrupted me, I was going to inform you that Zim had been working on a new project. That project was studying more about humans so he could behave more like one. He had started buying human things and saved a lot of files and when he had discovered you had been hacking the system and stealing Irken files, he deleted all of them, leaving only the human ones. Since I didn't have any Irken files to replace his memory with, I had to use human files. Now he believes he's a normal human teenager. He fainted because his Pak couldn't take any more of the confusion and it shut him down."

"...So then..." Dib was calculating all of this in his mind. "He thinks he's human? And he actually believes he has a skin condition because that was the only file you had to program into him?"

"That's what I just said."

"So how do I take care of him until he's able to take care of himself?" Dib didn't know how he would be able to tell Zim he was an alien. 'Hey, Zim, I just wanted you to know that you're an alien from the planet Irk that was sent here to destroy Earth and you lost your memories so now you think you're human'. That wasn't gonna work. Zim would just faint again from confusion.

"Just treat him like he's a human with a skin condition. His Pak is programmed to think it's taking care of a human. He now functions like a human. Although it was unable to do anything about his outer appearance so you'll have to make up an excuse for that, Master."

"He can eat human food? And do human things? Is he still allergic to water?" All these questions seemed really stupid and he was probably making the AI irritable, but he needed to be sure he was hearing this all clearly.

"Yes, he can eat human food and his skin no longer has a reaction to water. It's like human skin, what part of 'he acts human now' do you not understand? He can do everything a human can do, knows everything a human knows, and acts like a human acts. He can even take off his Pak and survive for up to 36 hours without it. He will probably be confused why he has a giant metal thing attached to his back when he wakes up, so just take it off and make sure you replace it when he goes back to sleep so he can recharge. The only thing wrong is his physical appearance. You have to come up with an explanation and make it sound reasonable."

This wasn't completely bad, but it wasn't the same. He didn't want this to happen. He wanted the computer make Zim come back. As an Irken! Not human! Dib wanted Zim back not someone who looked like Zim!

As if the computer had read his mind, he reassured Dib that Zim still had his personality, he just didn't remember his past. After Dib had calmed down and had accepted what fate had decided, the computer shut itself down again and the boy was left alone holding an unconscious Zim. He turned his gaze to Gir, who was laying in a doggy bed by the door, curled up and sleeping like a dog would. He'd have to make sure Gir acted like a dog so Zim didn't get too freaked out.

Slowly and gently, the teen got off the floor with the smaller teen in his arms and laid him back on the couch. Once he had removed and hid Zim's Pak, and made sure Zim would be comfortable, he turned off the light and laid down himself. He didn't know how late it was but he was tired and he needed a lot of rest for the big day ahead of him.

* * *

**I don't know why, but I really enjoy writing this story. It's probably because of the angst. And I actually know where I'm going with this story. I'm stuck on 'Role Switch'. I had an idea for it but I lost it and now I don't know what to do with it. So I'll probably be working on this story more. **

**Also, I'd like to know how I'm doing as a writer. Am I being descriptive enough? Is everything making sense? If not or if so, please tell me so I know how I'm doing. Tips for improving my writing would be helpful. **

**Please review and I will most likely post another chapter tomorrow. **

***triple backflips away into oblivion* **


	4. Kidnapped

The next morning, Dib had made sure to wake up extra early. He had to make sure that the house looked like a normal house instead of an alien's secret base. He didn't feel like going to school in the rain just to get yelled at by teachers and picked on by bullies. He kind of wanted to talk to Gaz though, to tell her that he was okay and not to worry about him. She was probably preoccupied with her own drama though, so she wouldn't notice if Dib hadn't showed up to school.

He ran down to Zim's secret underground base and disabled anything that would harm and/or freak out Zim. He added a few extra rooms to the house to make it look more normal. Apparently, after all this time of living on Earth, Zim hadn't bothered to add important things to his house, like a bathroom or other bedrooms. Before it was just a living room and a kitchen with a toilet. Not exactly what you would call 'normal'.

Now that all that was done, Dib had to come up with an explanation for Zim's deformities. He could just tell him it's a birth defect? That could work. How would he explain the lack of parents though? Well, one of Dib's parents had died and the other had completely disowned him. He could just use that excuse, but it hurt too much to think about. He'd have to think of something else.

* * *

When Zim woke up he felt like his head was about to split in half. The room was spinning and he felt like he was going to vomit. He remembered that he was sleeping in his living room and that his parents were missing and instead replaced with some random guy. He still couldn't remember who that guy was. And the night before he wasn't making any sense. Zim brought his hands out from under the blanket and looked at them. He was hoping that it was all a dream and his hands would look normal, but no, they were still green and only had three fingers. Now that it was morning and there was more light; even if it wasn't much because it was gloomy outside; he was able to get a better look at his oddly shaped hands. His nails were long and pointed, like claws. He could probably claw through metal with how sharp they were. He didn't like they way they looked so he made a mental note look cut them later.

Even though his hands weren't like other people's hands, it somehow felt... normal. Like his hands had always been like that. He had complete control over the fingers and it didn't feel like anything was out of place or missing. Maybe that strange guy was right. Maybe they always had been like that and Zim had just forgotten.

Zim turned over on his other side and stared at the back of the couch. He tried his best to remember who that guy was, but nothing came up. He couldn't remember anything. Maybe he didn't know that guy? Something occurred to Zim and he bolted up at the realization.

What if that guy wasn't someone he could trust? He hadn't seen or heard his parents since he woke up. What if that guy had done something to them? What if that guy had hurt Zim, or drugged him and that's why he didn't remember anything? Zim looked around for any signs of a struggle around the house but there wasn't any. He big-headed guy wasn't around either. He got off the couch and cautiously made his way to the kitchen.

He peaked in through the doorway but no one was in there either. There was a giant mess on the stove and a lot of dirty dishes in the sink. There was a table off to the side in the kitchen with a plate of waffles on it. They were stacked really high and had gobs of syrup dripping off them. It looked suspicious.

What if it was a trap? What if it was poisoned? What if it was drugged?

Zim ran back over to the couch and picked up some boots that looked like they fit him. He hurriedly slipped them onto his socked feet and ran to the door, throwing it open and running out. It was pouring outside but he didn't care. He just wanted to get away from this house and try to get some help.

* * *

"Daddy, look! Other daddy's running away!" Gir yelled happily as he pointed to the video monitor that showed his former master running outside.

"Gir, I'm not your daddy and- wait, Zim's leaving!?" Dib looked up from one of Zim's old projects and saw the little alien running away. In less than three seconds, Dib was already running to the elevator and pushing buttons to take him up. Once upstairs, he ran to the living room and followed Zim.

* * *

He wasn't sure where he was going. He thought about just knocking on his neighbors doors and asking for help, but he just kept running. He didn't know what was going on. He was afraid and scared. Nothing was making sense and he couldn't remember anything. He thought he had been kidnapped and was going to be tortured. He just wanted to get away. He wanted to find out what was happening and where his parents were or at least someone he knew.

He couldn't remember when, but tears had started spilling out of his eyes. He was scared, confused, and just wanted to keep running, to get far away from that place as possible. His legs burned and he could hardly see past his hair that hung low in his face from the rain.

He ran as fast as his legs could go. They were still sore and didn't want to work properly. He still pushed them to run. He wanted to get away. He _needed_ to get away. He was in danger and needed help from someone.

Who could he go to though?

If he were thinking clearly, he would have thought to go to the police, but he couldn't think. His brain was screaming at him to run. So that's what he did.

Suddenly, someone had grabbed him.

No.

No, no, no, no, no!

He had been caught! Whoever it was had caught him and was preventing him from running! He needed to get away though! He couldn't stop running!

_HE NEEDED TO GET AWAY! _

He screamed. He screamed and yelled and begged his captor to let him go. They just held on tighter so he turned around in their hold and started hitting them. He hit any part of the person's body that he could. He didn't know if it was having any effect on his captor though. He was still weak and his punches weren't that forceful. He started kicking too, hoping that this person would take a hint and let him go. Finally he couldn't take it any more and gave up. He collapsed into the person's chest and sobbed.

* * *

Zim was pretty fast for someone so small and Dib almost thought he wouldn't be able to catch him. He was shocked when he had caught Zim and he started screaming. He tried to reassure Zim that it was just him but Zim didn't seem to hear. He kept screaming and begging Dib to let him go. No matter how hard the taller teen had tried to reassure Zim of who he was, it didn't work. When Zim had turned around to start hitting him, he noticed that Zim was crying.

He had never seen Zim crying before. It was one of the most horrible sights he had ever seen. To see the once proud little alien break down and cry like this made his heart twist painfully. He pulled Zim closer to him and let him sob into his chest. He hugged him as tightly as he could and whispered to him that everything would be okay.

He imagined how it weird it must look to see a tall pale teen hugging a small green being in the middle of the street, in the rain, but he didn't care.

He wanted Zim to be okay again. And he would do everything he could to make sure he was.

* * *

**I am soooo sorry about the last chapter. It started out great but then it started going down hill. I started writing it at night and at the end I got really tired and I wasn't aware of what I was typing. **

**I will fix it, I swear. It will be better. **

**But I thought I should post this chapter first, even though it's short. I said I'd have it updated today so I am updating.**

**Also, this might be included later in the fic, I was wondering what Dib and Zim's Zodiac sign would be. I'm pretty sure Dib would be a Pisces, but I can't figure out what Zim would be. Maybe a Leo because of his pride? Maybe a Capricorn because of his need to be needed? Maybe even a cancer because of his insecurities and rebellious attitude? If someone could help me figure this out, that would be awesome. **

**Please review~**


	5. Thinking It Over

"Zim is sorry for hitting you."

Zim sat quietly on the couch as his apparent friend checked him for any injuries or sickness. He had tried to protest, insisting that he was fine, but the taller of the two got his way. He wasn't sure when it started, but after he got used to his name, he started talking in the third person. It was probably his subconscious trying to remember his name by saying it out loud sometimes when he was referring to himself.

"It's no big deal." Dib replied nonchalantly as he felt Zim's forehead for a temperature. It felt a bit weird for him to be fretting over his former enemy like this, but he couldn't help himself. Zim was completely helpless now and Dib felt this odd need to protect him. It was kind of like Dib was Zim's new guardian. "I shouldn't have grabbed you like that and I should have explained to you who I was."

Zim nodded. "So I was in a lab accident as a kid?"

"Yeah." Dib went through the lie one last time in his head to make sure it was believable. "Your parents are like my dad. They're really into science and when you were little you were playing in your parents lab and there was an accident that changed your DNA. My dad was fascinated by your skin condition so your parents left you in his care and he was studying you for a while. That's how you and I met and we've been friends ever since. Then when my dad got tired of studying you, you came back to live at your parents house. But they're always gone on business trips so they're never here. You live here alone."

"And that thing is one of your dad's failed experiments?" Zim pointed to Gir who was currently rolling around on the floor. Dib had told Gir specifically to stay out of sight, but the robot forgot and Dib had to make up an excuse for him rather quickly so Zim didn't freak out (although, really, anyone would freak out with Gir around).

"Yep. His name is Gir. We had named him something else but he kept calling himself 'Gir' so that's what we started calling him." Gir got up from the floor and crawled up on the couch to cuddle Dib's arm. He started talking rather loudly about how his daddy had such a big head and Zim couldn't help but smile at the robots silliness.

And boy was that smile the most amazing thing Dib had ever seen! Whenever old Zim would smile, it was always a smirk or a devious grin. But this smile was different; this was genuine. Zim was smiling because he was actually happy, not because he was planning a new scheme or looking down condescendingly at other humans. Dib was glad for the warmth it brought to his heart after the past crazy 24 hours of him worrying over losing Zim. It didn't last too long, though, because a loud clap of thunder made the alien jump in surprise.

Zim mumbled something under his breath about the dreaded weather not being quiet enough and turned back to face Dib. "So how exactly did Zim lose his memories?"

"You hit your head yesterday, at the park. You were running and fell down pretty hard. Luckily, I was there with you and brought you back home. I stayed here to make sure you would be okay."

"Wasn't your dad worried about you when you didn't come home last night?"

Dib thought about this for a moment. No, his dad probably didn't care what had happened to him. In fact, he was probably happy that Dib didn't come home last night. He wanted to tell this to Zim and vent a little bit about this. Now that Zim no longer wanted to rip his guts out, and now that he was his friend, his only friend, he wanted to talk to someone about his situation. For so long he had just kept his feelings locked away and untouched; he never thought about them, never talked about them, they were just gone to him. Every once in a while these feelings would sneak out of their little heart shaped box and creep up on him. He had contemplated ending his life a few times because of this, but he had never actually gone through with it. He knew it wasn't healthy to bottle your feelings, but who could he talk to? His sister never really wanted to talk to him, his parental figure was the cause of these problems, and he didn't have friends. But now he had one! As much as he wanted to talk to Zim about this, it was too soon. He'd wait until Zim got a little more used to him, and then he'd talk about it.

"I told my dad where I was and he was okay with it." he answered lamely.

Zim cocked an eyebrow at the tedious answer. He could sense something wrong with the tone in Dib's voice but he didn't feel that it was appropriate to push for a better answer. According to Dib they had been friends for a long time, but for Zim, it was like meeting a complete stranger. He couldn't remember _anything, _not even who he was himself. And who knew how Dib felt about this situation, for all he knew, Dib could be mad at him.

Although, why would he be mad at Zim? Zim didn't do anything wrong, it was just an accident. He didn't know why, but he felt a little insecure around Dib. Like he wasn't good enough or he had done something wrong. Zim scooted away from the taller teen a bit, but made it look like he was just trying to get more comfortable.

"Well, you seem to be fine to me," Dib declared as he stood up. "Tell me if you start to feel sick or if something hurts."

Zim sat up a little straighter and waved his hand dismissively.

"I'll be fiiiiine. I am Zim after all." He wasn't sure what 'being Zim' had to do with anything, but it somehow made it seem like he knew what he was talking about. He added "Ehhhh I am a little hungry, though."

Right. Food. Dib had completely forgotten about that. He was so worked up about caring for Zim that he forgot about feeding himself or Zim. He was so stupid sometimes. Now that he reflected on it, he was pretty hungry himself.

He was about to ask Zim what he would want to eat but he was interrupted by Gir who declared he was going to make waffles for all of them. Zim watched as the miniature robot ran off laughing hysterically and cringed a little at the thought of waffles. He was really hungry and waffles were great but he felt sick at the thought of eating them. He didn't let Dib know that he felt sick though. He could not look weak in front of his friend!

* * *

They ate in silence, except for the loud munches and slurps coming from Gir. Dib was busy wolfing down his waffles while Zim poked at his and had a few bites here and there. With each bite he felt like he was going to vomit, but at least he was eating _something_. He felt like he hadn't eaten in days.

With nothing else to do, Zim looked around the small kitchen and took in his surroundings. It was still a mess and it made him feel like going on an OCD rampage. He noticed that there seemed to be a lot of purples and pinks around the house. It must have been his mother's decorating idea. Although he _was _wearing a pink sweater and the colors were very tranquil to him so they didn't bother him. In all honesty, if he had to choose, pink would be his favorite color, even if it was considered girly.

Though if he really thought about it, pink is just a lighter shade of red and it takes a real man to wear pink! Yes, pink was the perfect color for him to show off his manliness.

His eyes glided across the wall and stopped when he noticed a calender. December 6th... Which must mean...

"Christmas is coming?"

Dib looked up from his plate and wiped his mouth on his sleeve. "Yeah, it'll be here in a few weeks."

"Oh." was all he said.

Well this was just great. Amnesia right before Christmas, just what he's always wanted. He grumbled a little under his breath about this and took another bite of waffle. It almost made him throw up again and he had to keep it down by gulping milk.

While Zim was off in his own little world of Zim, Dib was occupied with his own thoughts.

Just like that, in less than forty-eight hours, Dib had made a friend, albeit it happened in a very strange way. It happened in a blink of an eye and Dib had very conflicting feelings about it. Sure, he desperately wanted a friend after years of being secluded from everyone, but he never imagined having his enemy as a friend.

Though when he really thought about it, Zim had kinda been his friend before this whole ordeal. They were always doing things together (even if it was trying to kill one another) and they always talked to each other (even if it was them spewing insults at each other). Zim was really the only reason why Dib got out of bed in the morning. In a way they were very awkward friends.

Hopefully the awkward would leave though. Maybe someday they could be normal friends, now that Zim completely forgot that he hated Dib. Being friends with your former enemy _was _a little weird though. Well there's no rule book anywhere that says you have to hate your enemies forever. Maybe this could actually work.

At the same time, he wasn't sure he wanted Zim as a friend. They had such a violent and wretched past together. Even though Zim wouldn't remember any of it, Dib would remember. He remembered everything. The hatred he had felt for Zim, the pain he had caused Zim, all the trouble he had caused. He had tried to turn Zim over to the FBI for all those years and now he was sitting with Zim, in his base-former base to be exact. It was all his now. Everything was his. Zim's base, his computer, his servant-even his memories! Dib had control over all of them. Everything Zim had ever known or cared about was now Dib's.

Dib felt a little guilty about it. He felt like he was manipulating Zim for his own gain. It wasn't right and if he could, he would give it all back to Zim. Zim didn't deserve this-to have his whole life taken away from him with just a little bit of water. If this was the way that Dib won his war with Zim, then he didn't want it.

But he did want it.

But he didn't want it.

This situation was overcomlicated. Dib was only thinking of himself and his problems. He needed to be thinking about what Zim needs and wants. Zim needs to think he's human so he doesn't blackout from too much confusion at once. If Dib were to tell Zim right now that he was an alien, Zim would lose consciousness. He couldn't do that to him.

He'd just have to deal with this burden himself and make Zim's life as simple as possible.

* * *

**Yay new chapter. Sorry it took so long, I wanted to make sure it was good and not just a bunch of words I threw together half-awake and called it a chapter. **

**I was going to rewrite chapter 3 but everyone seemed to like it, so I'll leave it the way it is. **

**I feel kind bad for making Zim and Dib so awkward around each other, but they'll open up to each other more later. For now they will be awkward little fricks. **

**Please review and all that stuff. **

***rolls away into a deep dark abyss in the middle of the floor* **


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